Spotify introduces paid podcast subscriptions

As previously reported, the popular music service Spotify has launched paid podcast subscriptions. At the moment, select partners of the service from the United States can use the new service, which will provide paid subscribers with bonus content and refuse to advertise.

Authors who want to participate in the program in the future can leave an application since, shortly, more users of the platform will have the opportunity to create paid subscriptions, including those outside the United States. It is noteworthy that not a single show on the Spotify platform will become completely paid; the subscription is made only to gain access to additional content.

Podcasters may not pay anything to Spotify for the first two years, but they will have to cover the transaction fees through Stripe, the platform’s partner. In 2023, Spotify will begin collecting a 5% commission for using the paid subscription feature. Paid content on Spotify will be marked with a padlock icon located where the play button would normally be. To unblock paid content, users will need to go to the corresponding Anchor web page. Podcast authors can post direct links to this page, for example, in their notes or episode descriptions.

It’s worth noting that you won’t be able to subscribe to the Spotify app itself. This means Spotify users on iOS devices will be able to subscribe without paying Apple a 30% commission. Subscribers will be able to listen to podcasts on the Spotify app or third-party apps via RSS feeds. Podcast authors will not have access to sensitive user information such as name or email address.